An American journal is reporting that seed companies in the United States are negotiating agreements with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service that would give USDA researchers better access to genetically modified and biotech seed supplies for research purposes.
An article inNature,a U.S. scientific journal, reported recently that Monsanto has finalized an agreement with the USDA that will give the department freedom to study Monsanto’s commercial seeds without requesting permission on each project.
Previously, researchers were required to sign stewardship agreements or similar contracts for each research project involving Monsanto’s biotech seeds.
Dow AgroSciences, Syngenta and Pioneer Hi-Bred are also negotiating similar deals with the USDA, according to the article.
Agreements are also expected with American universities.
The research agreements come on the heels of a complaint lodged by 26 U.S. researchers in 2009 that suggested contractual obligations being imposed by seed companies were thwarting public research that involved GM crops and biotech seeds.
According to the article, the Monsanto agreement applies only to agronomic research.
